Jared Sandberg, nephew of Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg, will manage the Bowling Green Hot Rods in 2013. He managed the Short-Season A Hudson Valley Renegades the last three seasons, including when the team won the New York-Penn League championship last year.

Sandberg played parts of three seasons in the major leagues (2001-03 with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays). His uncle Ryne also managed in the Midwest League, helming the Peoria Chiefs in 2007 and 2008. Ryne Sandberg currently is the third-base coach and infield instructor for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Kyle Snyder joins the Hot Rods as their new pitching coach. As Hudson Valley’s pitching coach last year, he guided a pitching staff with a 2.91 ERA, third-lowest in the New York-Penn League. He pitched five seasons in the major leagues, with the Kansas City Royals and the Boston Red Sox.

Manny Castillo returns to the Hot Rods coaching staff for his fourth season in Bowling Green and his 16th year in the Rays organization. He hit .242 in 236 big-league games, mostly with the Seattle Mariners. As a player he spent the 1975 season in the Midwest League, batting .325 with 1 HR and 34 RBI in 68 games with the Wausau Mets.

Upton began his professional baseball career with the 2006 South Bend Silver Hawks, hitting .263 with 12 HR, 66 RBI and 15 SB in 113 games. None of the other players involved in the trade played in the Midwest League.

News from Whitecaps winter banquet

Although many Midwest League teams annually host winter banquets, it isn’t every year that one makes news in the mainstream media. Last night’s West Michigan Whitecaps Winter Baseball Banquet did because Detroit Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski was there talking about rookie Bruce Rondon as the big-league team’s probable closer. You can read what he said in this Detroit News article.

Rondon spent the 2011 season with the Whitecaps, for whom he posted a 2.02 ERA and notched 61 strikeouts while earning 19 saves in 41 games/40 innings pitched. He advanced all the way to Triple-A last season.

Tigers prospect Bruce Rondon on the mound for the Whitecaps at Lansing’s Cooley Law School Stadium in 2011. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz)